How do I prepare to paint a floor that has been painted and coated with a varnish or polyurethane? It is in a historic building and the floors switch between cement and wood, but all were painted this way.
The only way to actually do this and preserve the history of the floors and the building is to strip the floor with wood stripper. You must take off the old coat of varnish on the floor so you can sand them down, refinish them, stain and varnish them again. This is quite a large job and you'll need to go to the hardware store and get some varnish stripper to apply on the floor first. Afterwards, to remove the varnish this take a scraper or something flat. The floor then needs to be sanded
If this is a historical building, I would do the job correctly to restore the floors and the value of the building. Normally, you should be able to rent some equipment to help with this job to make it a bit easier to do.
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What is the least intensive way to paint over varnish?
By randi from Williamsburg, KY
My sister bought a really nice house but for some reason the kitchen cupboards are made of plywood. In an attempt to make them look good, they've been varnished too many times-and each coat is THICK. She wants me to help paint them-I think they should be stripped first, she doesn't. Does anyone have any experience with painting over varnish? What kind of paint did you use? If you stripped it, did you put on a sealer and then paint?
Also, there is one cabinet that is laminated-how does one paint over that? Please help!!
Elisabeth from Milwaukee
TSP bought at Lowe's or Home Depot should be used first. Just mix specified amount in water and scrub surface. Do this a few more times to make sure it's gone over well. Make sure you rinse it off well and follow the directions using rubber gloves. When dry, apply Kilz primer which comes in a few choices. You will need to apply extra coats before you can paint. This will cover up the wood nicely. We used this process on old panel walls before painting over it and had no bleed through.
You do not have to strip the cabinets BUT, you do need to sand them well and as Lorelei said, use TSP to clean them. You could also use a liquid sander. Then I would use the best primer there is which is made by Zinser.
I painted over a varnished piece of furniture very successfully by leaving it out in the hot sun. I have the advantage (?) of living in a country with very hot summers so that the sun would bleach out the varnish. After a few days, I painted over it with no problems at all. Hope this helps.
I painted over every door in my condo, all were varnished, that's 9 doors on both sides, and 6 that are part of double sliding or bi-fold doors of which I only did the visible side, plus the interior surface of the two doors going outside.
I used a power sander just to scratch the surface, but not to remove all the varnish, then 1 coat of Zinsser's Bullseye 123 Primer, and then 3 coats of semi-gloss paint. I don't know how long ago that was, at least 10 or 12 years ago--and they still look great. There are just a few tiny nicks which I can touch up with leftover paint.
It's the best thing I did to this place, the doors were very dark and made the condo look very dreary. Now they're a creamy white and brighten every room. I left the trim the way it was a medium stain.
What is TSP? I live in Europe and might be able to get it if I know the full chemical name.
Zinsser cover stain is an oil base primer sealer and "bond" coat and is my go to product for all questionable substrates on interior painting also as a rule can not paint latex over oil thats where the zinsser comes in as it is oil base and an exellent base coat for latex even though it breaks the rule (latex over oil) it is made for that
Trisodium phosphate
Try Tri-Sodium Phosphate, generally it can be used to clean soof off fireplace brick.
TriSodium Phosphate
I have brown, I think varnished (it has a shiny coat on it, I assume it's varnish), trim in my bathroom. I want to paint it white and was hoping I wouldn't have to do any sanding before hand. Can I add Kilz or some type of primer to the area before I paint and avoid sanding?
By JS
Why not ask the pros at your local paint store. They deal with these questions all the time.
Thanks for the most obvious fox. But I would rather take advice from others who have done it first hand than go to my paint store and end up with products that will end up being as much as trim after it's all said and done, and FYI: I don't post on here very much but when I do, this is what you will see. I'm asking for friendly hands on advice. What do you use it for?
I guess I would rather ask pros than get advice from people that probably were using a trial and error method, and got a finish that they liked, but you might not like. From what I have seen on some of the home decorating shows on TV you either have to sand or use a primer.
Just because you ask for advice at a paint store doesn't mean you have to buy the recommended products. Just say you have to consult your significant other and thank them for the advice. Then you can go purchase similar items at a discount store.
All in all you will have to buy some products, if you sand, you will need to buy the paint, if you use a primer, you have to buy the primer and paint. With sanding you have to buy the sanding equipment(paper and some kind of block to put it on, to make the sanding easier). Sanding is harder and more time consuming than using primer.
If you don't want to ask anyone, just go look at a can of Kilz and see what it says about sanding and priming. From what I remember you don't have to do either, but I haven't used it in a few years.
Well, if you want another answer. Paint will not adhere to the shiny substrate. You need to scuff the surface for the paint to bond. You don't need to use sandpaper but you can buy a product from 3M called Scotchbrite. It is a nylon pad impregnated with either a silicone carbide or aluminum oxide mineral. Grey is the silicon and red is the aluminum product.
The difference is the silicone cuts finer. You can fine this product at auto part stores, big box stores and paint stores. I don't use Klix as I have found it difficult to cover with a top coat. I have used it a few times but found after several top coats the white still is visible through the top coat.
A product called "gripper" (similar to kilz) actually allows paint to adhere to slick surfaces, even glass.
Yes, the obvious is sand to give a "tooth" to the wood. There are liquid sanders also.
Ask if the clerk is an experienced painter at your local big box store for advice.
Any finish should be prepared before painting. Find some "liquid sandpaper" at your paint store, and follow the instructions exactly. 'Paso' is the best I've ever used, but it can be hard to find. Only one store in our city carries it. I haven't looked online.
I am painting some chairs which are either varnished or stained. The coating is really light and goes back to the wood in most places easily, but some areas are harder to sand back. Do I have to take the entire varnish off or can it just be heavily sanded so it is rough?
By Tracey
Paint does not adhere well over varnish, so it is best you do stain it for a good even coat.
I would get rid of all the varnish for the paint to cover evenly.
I've already made the mistake of painting two coats of enamel over varnished cabinets. The yellow streaks still bleed through. What product can I use to correct this mistake without starting over?
By Jeff B.
I have the same problem. I'm using Annie Sloan Chalk paint on wood and the varnish is bleeding through.
Steps to paint over kitchen cabinets after varnish is stripped and sanded
Can I use Valspar high hiding primer on slightly sanded, varnished stair spindles before I paint?
If sanded, yes.
Can I use water based varnish on previously petroleum based varnished floors? The drying time is the main factor in this regard.
By Lynn
If you use a water based application on an oil based surface you will have bigger problems than just a prolonged drying time. First and most important of those problems is that the water based application will not be able to form a bond with the oil based application - this will lead to peeling/blistering and will look awful.
Prepare your surface properly before attempting the water based application for long-lasting, high quality results. A bit of elbow greased effort now will save you a lot of elbow greased effort to repair the horrid mess of applying any finish to an improperly prepared surface, not to mention the amount of money you will save doing it right the first time!
I have hardwood window frames (mahogany). I want to paint them gloss white to smarten them up. What is the best way of going about this?
By Alan from Liverpool
Have you tried contact primer which according to SW does not need sanding and sticks to any smooth surface?
What is the best way to paint over varnished doors and doorways that are very dark?
By Shir from Sydney, Australia
The very best way is to remove the doors and sand the varnish off. Then use a good primer, and paint the colour you want. The sanding removes the varnish that if left on could cause your paint job to peel and look nasty; the primer creates a paintable barrier-the paint goes on and stays on, but you don't have the paint soaking into the wood and causing you to need more than three coats to get good coverage.
Another, quicker way to paint a varnished surface, is to 'rough' the surface of the varnish with either a commercial product like TSP (labelled as a cleaner), or a homemade rougher like vinegar and water. Apply wearing protective gloves, and use a nylon scrubber pad.
Roughing the surface should break the chemical bond the varnish has with the wood, and makes it easier to paint over without having to worry about the new paint peeling. It doesn't always work, though, so the best thing to do really is to sand the varnish off and start with bare wood.
It is often recommend that you sand any surface thoroughly prior to painting it. Painting over varnish without sanding is not a best practice but it can be done.
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Our home was built in the early 70s. The wood was finished with high gloss varnish and now we want to paint over it. What is the least labor intensive way to prepare the high gloss surface?
I am wanting to paint over a banister around the stairs with a cream gloss. It is varnished brown at the moment. Is that possible without sanding?
